Islam

Islam is the second largest religion of the world whose followers are called Muslims. The largest number of Muslims are in Asia and Africa and particularly in middle east and north Africa. The founder of Islam, Muhammad, was born about 570 A.D. in Mecca. His parents died when he was young and was raised by relatives. When Muhammed was about 40 years old, God began to speak to him. God told him to transmit His message to people of Arabia. In 622 A.D. the people of Mecca, where he was living with his family got so upset with his teachings that Muhammed and his followers had to flee. His escape to the city of Madina is known as HIJRA and this day is considered as the beginning of Islam. Eight years later (630 AD), Muhammed returned to Mecca and took over the city with a large number of his followers without any resistance. Muhammed called God as Allah and declared Mecca a holy city and Kaaba a shrine for Allah. God also dictated a book to Muhammed which was written down later and is known as KORAN. From then on the followers of Islam built a mighty Empire that streched from Spain to India at its peak.

FIVE PRINCIPLES OF ISLAM

1. There is no God but God(Allah), and Muhammed is His prophet.
2. Prayer to Allah five times daily
3. Charity- helping the poor and providing for upkeep of places of prayer.

4. Fasting- never drink alcohol or eat pork and certain other foods; and no eating, drinking or smoking during daylight for one month (Ramadan).

5. Pilgrimage to Mecca at least once in a life time. After Muhammed's death, the Muslims tried to develop specific policies based on what Muhammed said and did at various times. These were compiled into a collection known as Hadith. From Hadith and Koran, the scholars in 7th and 8th century developed a set of rules for worship and for life. These rules are now known as SHARIA or Islamic law. To govern the state, the Muslims elected the succesor whom they called Caliph. Muhammed's son Ali was selected as the fourth Caliph. The majority, Sunnite consider first three Caliph as genuine whereas a minority, called Shiites believe that it was Muhammed's wish that Ali be the first Caliph. The separation of Islam into 'Sunnite' & 'Shiite' has no exact parallel in other religions. Under these two denominations there are several sects with somewhat different beliefs.

More on Islam

Prophet Muhamad was born on 29th August 570 and died on 8th June 632 and his life history is uncertain though his later biographer Ibn Ishaq made a narrative. The authentic source can be the Quran but the time and place of the "revelations" is not certain. He migrated to Madina from Macca at the age of 50 or so.

The prophet was born in a numerous Maccan family His father's name was, perhaps Abdallah and his parents died early. He assumed his own name as Muhammad in his prophetic eareer. His life has 4 periods (1) For 40 years he lived as a pagan in Macca. At the age of 24 he married a much older woman Khadijah who bore him 4 daughters and one or more sons (who died in infancy). In the 40th year he received the "revelations", wherein the office of prophet was conferred on him (2) for 3 years he carried on propaganda for finding followers among his family members, friends and common people. (3) for 24 years he carried on his mission in Mecca publically under the protection of his uncle Abu Talib, (who, however, was not a believer) and after his death the mission passed on to Ta'if until the protector could be found in another Meccan magnate. His followers were persecuted and they found refuse in Christian Abysene. There was in those days a civil war in Madina and he as prophet was called to settle the dispute. But he sent his own followers as bodyguards first and he escaped with difficulty from Macca (4) Once in Medina he organised his followers into an army and ruthlessly suppressed the internal opposition and made alliance with various Arabian tribes and started raiding the Meccan caravans. Fighting his own fellow citizens he captured the city of Mecca in the 8th year of his migration. By the end of his life he imposed his doctrine on the whole of Arabia.

Excommunicated and extriminated the Jews and made Christians as tributery and abolished paganism (of rustic idolators and peasants who were not Jews, Christians or Muslims.) His remarkable success was not so much due to the objective truth of his doctrine as due to his skill as an organisor and military, leader. His success was due to his extraordinary ability to gauge the capacities of others and in the choice of his subordinates in which He made no mistakes. Secondly he was thoroghly aware of weaknesses or failings of the Arabs and utilised them with advantages. He had hardly any moral scruples, as some say, but had patience, courage and caution and also ability to seize the opportunity. He had distrust of loyality when not backed by interest. His military career began when he was over fifty. Surprise is excited how the Arabs abandened their gods and goddesses and accepted his logic.

Islam spread with the sword:-
The rise of Islam and its easy spreading was only due to the originator drawing the sword and handle it successfully. The Jews also helped him and favoured this advocate of Monotheism in the midst of Arab Tribes. The jews were more advanced intellectually and he made full use of this opportunity with his own ability to spread his doctrine among the pagan Arabs.

According to the Quran he was not a "big man" in his city and was poor and burdened with a large family. He was said to know reading and writing but not well. He dictated the ancient history in the Quran. He was said to be a tradesman with a known partner and the goods in which he dealt. In the Quran a mention of sale, barter, profit, loss is made about his trade. He was said to be employed by his first wife Khadijah in the conduct of a caravan and others tell of him following this occupation early in life. He seemed to have travelled in his youth through Syria and he refers to the ignorance of the Arabs in the Quran which shows his acquaintance with a higher civilization.

A relative of his wife helped as he translated or copied a portion of the gospel as christainity had spread in Northern and southern Arabia. He fairly accurately makes a mention of the psalm which he wrote in the Quran more from heresay than by actual reading of the bible. So also as narrated by others. The scrolls of Abraham and Moses were similarly reproduced. He only knew stories from Bible and not the text more accurately by reading it. He had only vague impressions, though things interested him greatly.

Prior to the call to Medina, for 5 years he practiced ascetic retirement in Gar-i-Hira to acquire merit. He had trance situation and would wrap himself in blanket and perspire profusely and uttered in trance which communications were embodied in the Quran as revelations from God. These were sometimes in verse form with rhyme and in prose of classical Arabic. In his lifetime his book resembled a newspaper having fluid existence. It was as a whole continuous but each number had ephemeral importance and the prophet himself never thought of collection of the Quran. The oracles were partly spontaneous and partly required, for emergencies and he delivered them in what spiritualists call "the superior condition." The oracles were supplemented by dreams. Muhammd in these oracls was calling himself a 'Warner'. He foretold misfortunes and told the line of conduct whereby they could be averted. The propheies seemed to be as of his being the head of the community, its priest and its king. He is said to have epileptic fits accompanied by revelations. But writers like Sprenger doubt if these occured as he was a man of great physical strength, since his life as tyrant of medina was spent in constant military expeditions. To this were added the cares of a rapidly increasing cummunity, of which he was at once priest, legislator, ruler and judge. Yet people never heard of his health breaking down under the strain. The "fits" seem to have been experienced only when they were required for the delivery of the revelations and these in no case interfered with his activities.
When Mohummad became head of a state, his Quran served as Government organ. It reproduces narratives from the Bible which he could not know from books and may be from direct inspiration and hence seems to be the miraculous character of the whole work.

He did not want to inculcate any doctrine and is said to easily drop any particular doctrine under political pressure. The main doctrines of early teachings were about future life, unity of God and the folly of idolatory though when he wanted to kiss the Black stone it is clear that he was not dead set against idolatory. The doctrine of future life was preached in early days as the warning of the approaching end of the world and the day of judgement.

Yet he afterwards made the martyrs in his cause enter Heaven at once and his enemies enter Hell soon after death. At one time he admitted Mecca 'goddesses in his pantheon but did not record it in Quran and called it the devil's interpolation. He even at one time consented to erase his title as "Apostle of God", when it suited to the ratification of a treaty. He was not quite steadfast and firm but rather expedient.

The 'cannons of Islam' were slow growth and mostly were the restoration of the religion of Abraham. The name "Hanif' in the Quran is applied to the religion of Abraham and is synonymous with Muslim, the title invented by the patriarch. When the prophet made pilgrimage to Mecca as part of his system, the Kabah was built in the name of Abraham. The five time prayer which later became stereotyped was for legal purity and was connected with military drill and so was one month's fasting as a military exercise to accustom fighting men to endure privation and to turn night into day. The giving of Alms (Zakat) as 7}/2% of income tax is organised poor relief. There was taboo on intoxicants which was also military discipline. Any such teaching were after migration and these were suggested by Judaism which the prophet got to know in Madina. His borrowing was disguised with some modification, as instead of Sabhath being on Saturday he made it on Friday & reduced the time till mid-day for religious ceremony or service. The swine's flesh was forbidden as in Mosaic code as the animal was dirty. The Muslim & jews could eat together and this he recorded in the Quran. From Christians he borrowed very little, was friendly to them as though in Meccan period he found refuge for his followers in Christian Abysenia. He supposed that the Christians worshipped God, Virgin Mary & Isa or Jesus. He fully accepted virgin birth and the Ascension but not Resurrection, as he denied that Christ had been crucified and he Vehemently rejected the doctrine of the Divinity of Christ. The Christian visitors to Medina were said to be shocked by his Haram and the Jewish people by his ignorance of religion as he avoided religious discussions.
The local gods and the tribal cults had to be abolished for the political union of Arabia and Muhammad as a military and diplomatic expert and an able chief was considered by the more devout members to be able to call in the divine arid whenever he was in need of it and men like Khalid-al-Walid and Amar as the militarily successful ones had been moved by the admiration for the prophet's military and diplomatic skill and were anxious to serve under so able a chief.
About the sincerity of Muhammed in calling himself as the spokesman of the deity, sprenger calls the revelations as "apileptic falsehood" but some others believe that the communications were direct from the deity and he attributed his victories to super-natural forces.

As for moral reforms, he abolished infanticide which was commonly practiced in Arabia for girls. If somebody violated the oath he could pay some compensation. About morals there is in the Quran general moderation. It tolerated polygamy and unlimited concubinnage and assumed slavery. About blood feuds mild reprisals were favoured. He found no fault with private property and acquisiton of wealth but deprecated extravagance in almsgiving & other expenses. He rated very high personal morality sometimes practiced by Sufis and approved by Muhammad's early adherents but finds little support in the Quran or from the prophet's own career. He claimed large shares in the booty won in his raids and so also in the territory as his domain. He can not be credited with much reform except infanticide as he did not depart very much from the current notions and his subordination can be seen in the Quran.

Honour to parents had a high place in his commandments but he called it undesirable when parents did not allow their children to join his ranks as followers and he did not allow the children to pray for them. This is one example of intolerance, when his own interest was involved. He wished to make Muslim life sacrosanct within the Muslim world but faild as there was civil war among his followers and the victims of massacres by Muslim Sultans have been Muslim communities, and families Toleration :-Friendship with other communites is forbidden. This is more political than religious. This was the cause of quick spreading of Islam. There are references in the Quran for large hearted tolerance and for extreme fanaticism. At once place he promises future happiness for jews, Sabians and Christians on condition of their believing in Allah and at another he calls them pagans when he is less satisfied. The Muslims are told to fight with other communities relentlessly till they accept Islam or pay tribute in humiliation. Friendship with other communities was forbidden. The Muslims were asked to conceal their faith if confession was dangerous. This was the system more political than religious. Those who professed to follow the revealed book were permitted existence but after they were disarmed and made tributary. This was slavery in other words. The existence of communities to which this did not apply was forbidden. The Christian toleration, though praisworthy was clearly illogical to him, as held by some.
Legislation:- As a legislator Muhammad perpetuated the existing practices than introducing a fresh system and Quran is no basis for any jurisprudence. It is said to be imperfect, self contradictory and destitute of order. In case of conflicting enactments tradition is brought in for example, about law of inheritence improvisation is used and barbarity and folly of hand cutting as the punishment for theft is apparent. All law was as got from the Quran or the prophet's inspired conduct.
Philosophy:- He does not seem to have a liking for metaphysical speculation. His theology was of doubtful firmness. His theory of the diety is anthropmorphic. The Allah of Quran has been compared to a magnified Oriental despot. A royal court is formed by the angels. Jibrail carries messages to the prophet, whereas others are sent mounted on horses to fight the prophet's battle Other intelligent beings are Jinns or Shaitans whose prince is Iblis Satan is the power of evil. He causes men to forget and even interpolates the oracles of the prophet. He has divine permission to mislead mankind future life is of bodily pain & pleasures and so metaphysical questions about the soul are scarely touched. The creation is narrated as in the Bible. The teleologic argument for the existence of God is often emphasised.
He is said to have organised assassinations and wholesale massacres. Some say that his carrer as tyrant of Medina is that of a robber-chief who grabbed the plunder without any justice. He was said to be an unbridled libertine and encouraged the same passion in his followers and expressed the authority of the deity in his shady deals. There was no doctrine which he was not prepared to abandon in order to secure a political end. At different times he is said to have abandened the unity of God and his claim to the title of Prophet. His personal conduct as a model for his followers is said to have done serious mischief, and some say that this was a disagreable picture for the founder of a religion. View of some important persons:- Karlyle in his Hero & Hero worship called Muhommad as a heroic prophet as Odin was called a heroic divinity. Some writers like Syed Ameer Ali object to the biography by Ibn Isheq and insist that Muhommad's motives were honourable. His toleration of polygamy and slavery were actually for suppression of them. He was even said to set an example of Monogamy, but the result is unconvincing. There has been some description in which the prophet is shown to have practiced all the virtues which mankind admires. However there are said to be three sources where historical character has been distorted and mythical character has been substituted. (1) In the Quran Mohammad on the whole disclaims being wonder maker though accepts the miracles of Moses and Jesus and others. The miracles are his victories with the help of Angels. To this can be added the prophecy of the Roman victory over the Persians. In the Quran it is not any mysterious knowledge. If is likely that in his life time many miracles were attributed to him which he did not claim. By the 4th century of Islam many such miracles were collected and were attested by chain of witnesses. About foretelling the future it can be that he said it in a dream.

Regarding his ascent into Heaven "Quran merely says that God took his servant by night from the sacred place of prostration to the farthest place of prostration. It is believed that from Mecca he was taken to Jerusalem and from there to Heaven.

2. The prophets sayings and doing were made into a law like law Oral law and not at first written down. The Prophet's merits as a legislator must be judged from the Quran though the rest of the sacred code is ascribed to him wrongly.

Khalifas many people came & thus it spread. The persian brought their language but in course of time it mingled with Chinese and lost is force except a few words written in Chinese.

In India :- Islam was intorudced into India by the Arab invaders who entered Sind under Muhammad bin Kasim in 712 A.D. & founded a Mohammad State which was eventurally absorbed in Mughal Empire sabuktagin raided three centuries after and Mohamad Ghaznavi followed who died in 1030 Then in the 12th century Mohamad Ghori established a dynastry at Delhi which continued during Mughal Empire till 1858.

Wars of Succession: After the death of the prophet, Ali-Ibn Ali Talib-his cousin and son-in-law was appointed the spiritual Head of Islam. It was believed in those days that who does not recognise the Imam dies as a pagan. His right were usurped by (inturn) Abu Bakr, Umar & Othaman. Though Ali was elected Khalifa after Othman's death but he was assisnnated after a reign of 5 years (656 to 661 A.D.) His eldest son ali Hasan was 2nd Imam but he abdicated after 5 or 6 month in favour of Umayad. The younger son of Ali Husain was the 3rd Imam and he attempted to regain his temporal right by a rash revolt against Umayyad but perished on the fatal field of Karbala on Muharram 10, A.H. 61 (Oct. 10 A.D. 680). The nine remaining Imams lived in dread of Umayad and many died of poison or other violent means. They were descended from Husain and the daughter of Yazdigirt III the last sasanian king of Persia She was taken prisoner in the battle of Qadissiyya and given in marriage to Husain. This is persian origin of shia and their affections for the Imam who were not only descendents of the prophet but also of Shia and their affection for the Imam who were
not only descendents of the prophet but also of the Royal house of Sasan.

THE KURAN (OR KORAN, AL KORAN)
The Quran is the sacred book of the Muslims. It has used as 55 chapters and in the Quran itself it is called Al-Koran which means "the lesson" derived from Quraa which means to recite, to read. The Quran is to be recited to people leisurly.
The chapters of the quran are called Surah which may means row of bricks or column as a wall. There is much repetition, rapid translation and miscellaneous character of the work which professes to contain a detailed account of "everything".
The contents are mainly warnings, remonstrances and assertions or exhortation for some doctrines. The purpose is to enforce morals. Allusions are to contemporary history and frequently the prophet's experiences are recorded with a view to warn & apologize. Two many warnings for furture punishment and the book abounds in descriptions of both the pains in hell and the delights in paradise. Legislation occupies a very small place and there are percepts on various subjects scattered throughout as for example, on inheritance, adultry and many other subjects. These legislations are in the form of 'Fatwa' i.e. answer to questions than a code, so that there are open contradictions. There are narratives about various other prophets, David and Elijah, Mosses, Abraham, Lot, Noah, Adam etc. and also "Jinns", and as the mountain was raised on the head of Israelites and Jesus made birds of clay & animated them.

Description of natural phenomena is brief to demonstrate monotheism. Narratives of the Deity talking to the prophet, exhortations of the prophet to the Jins to convert them. In 3 chapters domestic affairs about his wives, his adopted son Zaid and his uncle are alluded to.

Due to strong emotions of love and hate, frequent revelation were there which makes the quran as a personal diary of the prophet. It records doubts felt about his mission and success in critical situations at different times in his career and hard blow he gave and received, there is so much material about his biography as later his biographies mostly were based on the Quran. The law is quoted "Soul for soul, eye for eye, nose for nose ear for ear and tooth for tooth". Nor shall they enter paradise until the camel passeth through the eye of the needle. The prophet had access to the Bible & Talmud out of which many references were made though not quite accurate as he did not read but heard as told by others as the Bible was not then translated into Arabic.

The prophet doubted if christ was crucified, as sombody else was crucified. He even denied Christ's divinity and resurrection.

The prophet had no literary model before him for form or matter to write the Quran as a writer of authority It was first written like a loose news paper and it was composed later in Mecca. Some charged him as a Jin-ridden poet. Though he asserted that God had not taught him poetry.

Some say that the Quran is a hidden book in Heaven and is to be touched by the honorable & cleaned and the prophet had a mental perusal of the divine book whose contents he communicated to his countrymen. It is belived that the language of the divine original is heavenly which is translated in Arabic to be intelligible. The book was brought down by the faithful spirit called Gabriel to the Prophet's heart if not in exact words but in the general sense. The prophet dictated to Zaid, for instance what had been revealed. The prophet confessed that he had forgotten the text which is recited.

It is believed that the Quran was not written in the prophet's life time and that it was changed by the transfer of Islam from Mecca to Medina and in the early days of Islam in accurate citation was common for a time at least.
Both the 2nd and third Khalifahs had a hand in arranging the quran, though in the main the arrangement was of the prophets and the uniform copy was circulated by destroying all others. In fact the collecting of the Quran was started in the reign of 1st Khalifah. It is also said ali after the death of the prophet made a copy of the Quran in 3 days from memory. The collection was attempted by others also during prophet's time and after. There is repetition of the same verse (with some minor changes) in different surahs. This is for the reason that the collection was made by different persons and different surahs are agglomerated. The work of Ibn Ishaq is generally trusted. Some Surah are Meccan and others Medinese.

The miraculous nature of the book is not very convincing though the prophet was said to have suddenly acquired the ability to read and write and to reveal event known by supernatural means and the knowledge be revealed could have been acquired only supernaturally, as he knew the events where he was not present. The prophecies the prophet made showed his super natural powers, e.g. the defeat of the jews, the recovery of the Near East by the Byzantines (Roman) from the Persian conquerors. Some Muslims also to the prophets annoyance, ridiculed the revelations.

Place of Quran in Islam :-
Soon after the Quran was published it became the basis of education, public and private worship which consisted in reading a portion of it. It became source of law and orthodox theologians thought that it contains all possible knowledge ( one such admirer opined that 10,000 problems were dealt with). It was to be touched by the clean and was not to fall into the hands of the infidel and Muslim sentiment is generally not to translate it, as it is a sacred book. It is the authority on law, Chief source of grammar and the unapproachable model of eloquence.

When Islamic sects developed, the infallibility of Quran was accepted by all.

The inspired oracles delivered by the prophet in some circumstances of his life were not generally committed to writing. The prophet had given instructions not to hasten the Quran be fore the inspiration was decided and intimated that its collection, reading and interpretation were lawful only to him.

After A.H. 86, the process of collecting the Quran came to an end or by the end of 1st Century and officially recognised by the 3rd Khalifah, though Shian writers accuse of elimination of many Verses, from the official text. This accusation is perhaps, the outcome of political intrigues.

The mention of Quran in Christian books is only with the end of 8th century and the Christian called early Muslim as Ishmaelites or Hagarians which words refer to ethnological origins and not to their religious system, as it was then believed that they went about not to spread a new religion as to conquer new towns, and Mohammad himself in the 2nd half of 7th Century was said by early Christians to be a mere general professing the old Abrahamic faith preserved in the town of Madina (Medinah named after the 4th son of Abraham).

One writer said that the Ishamelites were idol worshippers, then a pseudo-prophet rose among them, who through colloquial with an Arian monk (Sargius) had access to the old and New Testaments and founded a special sect".
Quran has been translated into Latin, French, English, German, Italian, Dutch, Russian, Persian, Turkish, Urdu, Turki, Bengali etc. but because of its style it is doubtful whether any of these translations can satisfy all the exigencies of the Semitic language exhibiting the phenomenon of the rhymed prose (saj). The Quran has about 80,000 words like New Testalment, 114 suras of varying size from score of pages to a dozen words. The suras each has a name & each is divided by in a numbered verssege. The first sura called 'opening' is a devotional prayer. The remainder is in the form of address from God, directly or through Mohammad whose name is mentioned 4 times and by implication constantly. It was revealed to the prophet during his stay in Mecca and Medina. Each sura opens with the formula "In the name of God the merciful and compassionate". It is in prose but rhymed. It deals with many topics from previous prophets to judgment from divorcees to oneness and omniscience & Supreme majesty of God, from victory of Romans to kindness to orphans. The style of powerful sometimes firy, deeply moralist and theocentric. The whole reverberates with a passionate demand for obedience to the will of a transcendent buj: mightily active God who is to say something to us and who chooses to disclosed himself e.g. choosing Mohammad in 7th Century & from eternity he speaks to men, something which is an inherent and timeless (pre-existent) quality of the divine. The revelation is something from God to man than revelation of God.

God created the universe, ordaining its processes and controlling them. He prescribed a pattern or order which nature must obey. So also ordained a pattern of behavior for man who was conscious and free to chose God's decree. There is for man a right way to live. Adam was the first prophet & then many more but the Quran sent to Mohammad superseeds all & corrects them. Every Muslim by reading the Quran enters into communion with reality.

Non-Muslims schools, on the other hand believe that Quran did not originate directly with God but on earth & was in the mind & personality of Mohammad & the environment in which he came. But Mohammad like Joan of Arc had vision, heard voices & said the Angel Gabriel coming to him.

The Quran was officially promulgated by Califha Othaman about (650) 20 years after Mohamad's death and improved upon by the Iraq Governor Al-Hajej about 30 years later and was accepted by Muslim community throughout. But the 1919 addition, beautiful & precise print brought out in Cairo under the Royal patronage (many times reissued) seems to be giving this the status of an agreed official text.

More about Mohammad:-
His name was Abul Qasim Mohammad Ibn Abdullah. He was post humuous. Instead of Mohammadoanism the Muslim prefer Islam as their religion which means submission to God. He belonged to the quarish (Korish) clan.
The entire Arabian peninsula was unified and embassies organized in many Mohammadan countries. The political and religious systems of the community were organized in his personality which was reflected in the everyday conduct & outlook of succeeding generations.